Fred van fleet



(No Model.)

F. VAN FLEET; TYPE CLEANING BRUSH FOR TYPE WRITING MACHINES. No. 450,126. Patent-ed Apr. 7, 1891.

WITNESSES JJWEWJOZ? M WW W 41;, I 4 M flitornqy m: NORRIS PETERs cu, PHOY0-L|THO., WASHINGTON, n. c.

, FRED VAN FLEET, OF \VILLIAMSPORT, PENNSYLVANIA.

TYPE-CLEANING BRUSH FOR TYPE-WRITING MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 450,126, dated April '7, 1891. Application filed January 2, 1891. Serial No. 376,470. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRED VAN FLEET, a citizen of the United States, residing at Williamsport, in the county of Lycoming and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in 'lypeCle-aningBrushes for Type-\Vriting Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The chief object of this invention is to pro ing motion, whereby this cleaning action is effected, the brush being also tilted thereby so as to be presented end on to the type, substantially as hereinafter set forth and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 representsa side elevation of the brush and its support in the position taken at one-quarter stroke, the three-quarter-stroke position of said brush being indicated by dotted lines and the type-basket being shown in vertical section. Fig.2representsaplan of the same, and Fig. 3 represents the brush and supporting and actuating devices, as well as two of the type-bars and types, in elevation, the position of the brush being normalthat is to say, as it appears before beginning a stroke.

A designates the brush, which is fastened to a bar B at or near the upper end of the latter. The said bar is longitudinally slotted at 1) near its lower end, and is mounted on a pivot-pin 0, extending horizontally inward from a standard D through said slot. This standard is rigidly fastened by a clamp-plate E and screw F or any other convenient means to a rod G, forming part of the machine-frame. The upper part- D of said standard is tubular, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 23, forming a transverse horizontal bearing for a crank-shaft H, provided with an actuating crank-arm I. The other end of said shaft is provided with a crank J, having attached thereto a wrist-pin K, that is connected pivotally to a pin or stud L about the middle of the bar B. The type H, carried by typebars N, resting at their lower ends within a guide-ring 0, make, as illustrated, an elliptical type-opening. For such an opening the brush A (see Fig. 2) has also an elliptical form, and is of width at little greater than said type-opening and of length a little greater than the distance from the end of said type-openin g to the center thereof. This latter excess is sufficient to allow for the lateral displacement of the brush, hereinafter described, and insure the brushing of every ty 3e.

The operation is as follows: Beginning with the brush in the position shown by Fig. 3 below the type, the rotation of shaft H turns the crank-arm J from the downward vertical position shown in said Fig. 3 to the horizontal position shown in Figs. 1 and 2,the bar B, of course, being simultaneously moved endwise and tilted laterally with respect to said shaft, so as to brush against the face of onehalf the type in ascending through them, the said tilting also presenting the bristles of the brush end onto the inclined faces of the said type, as shown in said Fig. 1. The sloth and pivot-pinO allow this oblique upward motion of the brush, the slotted part of arm B sliding over said pin. The continued rotationot' said crank-shaft H in the same direction gradually restores the bar B to avertical position, the crank-arm J being vertically upward at one-half revolution, and the bottom of slotbbeing against the pin 0. Continuing the rotation of said crank-shaft H, the crankarm J brings down the brush so as to strike against and across the other half of the type, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1, the action thereon being substantially as before, except thatitis descending instead of ascending. The continuance of this rotation brings the brush back to its first position. The sides of the brush are used on the type in ascending and also in descending; but one end is used in ascending only, the other only in descending. By reversing the direction of rotation the action of the brush ends is reversed also in this respect. Of course the shape of the brush may vary to suit the shape of the typeopening. The motion of the brush thus ex:- plained in detail is considered as a whole a combined elliptical and tilting motion, any point of said brush describing a complete ellipse, and the brush itself being alternately raised and tilted toward one end of the typeopening and lowered and tilted toward the other. The pin 0 and slot Ii constitute a guide for the said brush and confine it absolutely to one path of travel. The bristles of the brush by this peculiar motion are made to strike end on more or less against the face of the type with somewhat of the force of a blow, entering the interstices, prying out the dirt, and jarring out Whatever dirt or foreign matter they do not reach. The brush, being small, works smoothly and requires little power. Of course the brush may be above the type in its normal position. The downward motion of it will then precede the upward motion.

Having thus described my inventiomwhat I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In combination with the types of a type writing machine, a type-cleaning brush and its actuating-handle,the said brush being ar- 3. In combination with a brush, a crankshaft on which the said brush is mounted for giving motion to said brush in a closed curve through the type-opening of a type-writing machine, and a guide for the said brush, compelling it to tilt alternately in opposite directions as this motion continues, for the purpose set forth.

4. In combination with a type-cleaning brush and the longitudinally-slotted bar on which it is mounted, a crank-shaft connected to said bar and a pivot-pin entering said slot, the said crank-shaft, pin, and slotted bar serving to give said brush a compound elliptical and tilting motion, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. In combination with the type-cleaning brush of a type-writing machine, a crankshaft on which the said brush is supported,a guide for the said brush, compelling it to tilt alternately in opposite directions while carried by the rotation of the said crank-shaft through a closed curve, a support for said shaft, and guide and clamping devices for fastening the said support to the frame of the \Vitnesses;

J. H. ULMER, JAMES. W. SMITH. 

